Does Nick Saban's 24-hour rule apply to crippling defeats as well as crowning triumphs?

If it does, it's no doubt already been broken multiple times by multiple offenders, snapped in half like a bat over Bo Jackson's quad.

No matter what the head coach says, no one in crimson is going to forget Auburn 28, Alabama 27 any time soon.

There is one sliver of sunshine from Alabama's very own Black Friday. It wasn't the program's most crushing Iron Bowl defeat.

No day will live in infamy on that side of the divide like Dec. 2, 1972.

Choke, Bama, Choke is close, but as exploding cigars go, Punt, Bama, Punt left more of a mark.

That Alabama team was undefeated and ranked No. 2 in the nation. That Alabama team won the SEC championship. That Alabama team led Auburn 16-3 late in the fourth quarter, which meant that Alabama team was this close to a shot at a national championship.

And then thunder and lightning struck twice. Bill Newton blocked two punts and David Langner ran them both back for touchdowns for an incredible, indelible 17-16 Auburn comeback/Alabama collapse.

That game still resonates 38 years later. This one will linger, too.

Iron Bowl memories can be naughty or nice, but there's a more immediate question staring Saban and his program in the face. What now?

In the past 11 months, Alabama has descended from No. 1 in the nation to No. 4 in the division. Two months from now, some of the big-name juniors from the ultra-productive 2008 recruiting class could enter the NFL draft.

Julio Jones. Mark Ingram. Marcell Dareus. Mark Barron. Courtney Upshaw. All of them could take their talents to the next level.

What then?

The 2009 and 2010 classes were stocked with talent, too, but it takes more than talent to win championships.

This year's Auburn team, much like last year's Alabama team, possesses certain intangibles that this year's Alabama team does not. Chemistry. Tenacity. Resilience. You recruit those things as much as you do size, speed and skill.

This Alabama team did nothing to alter the perception that Saban wins by out-recruiting other people, not out-coaching them.

As good as he is, as much as he's done, Saban still has to prove he can win a great majority of his games when he doesn't have a decided edge in talent.

This season, in games decided by a touchdown or less, Alabama is 1-2. During his four years in Tuscaloosa, that record is 10-8.

Now look at Gene Chizik's Auburn record under the same parameters. This year, the Tigers are 6-0 in close games. In Chizik's two years, they're 8-3.

Head-to-head, Saban and Chizik are 1-1 overall, and both games were decided in the fourth quarter.

Breaking even with the Tigers isn't what Tide fans had in mind when Alabama hired Saban or when Auburn hired Chizik. Losing to the Tigers isn't what Tide fans had in mind when the Tide came out Friday with a perfect plan and near-perfect execution to take a 24-0 lead after 22 minutes.

You can blame Ingram for having the ball punched out from behind and Trent Richardson for dropping a touchdown pass, but there's a larger truth at work here. Going into halftime, Alabama had completely outcoached Auburn. From there, Auburn was the smarter team on the sidelines and the tougher team between the lines.

If the first half showed how good this 9-3 Alabama team could've been, the second half showed how good it wasn't.

Auburn had a lot to do with that, and now the Tigers are off to match the Tide's conference and national championships.